Mass Effect - Ghost Raven
by Jamesanimefan
Summary: A series taking place five years after the end of Mass Effect 3, featuring Kasumi Goto and a cast of original characters. When the Reaper War ended, the more hardened criminal element in the galaxy wasted no time taking advantage of people's suffering. Moved by this & more, Kasumi forms her own unsanctioned black ops team in an effort to make a difference.


Story One - Shades of Red

"You see that?" A male voice came over the com link.

Kasumi peered from around a corner of the building she was behind, her optic camouflage engaged. "I see it," she replied.

The male voice asked, "How you want to do this?"

"I'll take this one. You keep a lookout." Kasumi crept up behind a batarian who was the only one on guard duty that could be seen at the time. Carefully she made her way closer to him until there was only a few inches between them. Still cloaked and quiet, Kasumi's omi-blade flashed out long enough to drive it between his helmet and chest armor before disappearing. The lifeless batarian fell backwards into her arms, then was dragged away into the shadows.

"Looking good from here. Nice work," said the male voice.

Kasumi crept to where the guard was originally standing and asked, "Vic, you're not using a certain optics mode are you? Because if you are, this is going to get awkward."

The male voice responded, "Nah. Momma raised me better than that."

"Good to know," she said with relief. "It's sweet you still call her that."

Victor replied, "Momma's a sweet lady. Maybe I'll introduce you to her one day."

"So she survived the war, that's good. Many weren't so lucky," she said while moving closer to the door of a modular building. "I've patched myself into their communications. We got a patrol headed this way. Can you see them, Vic?"

Victor scanned the area with his sniper rifle. "Nothing but rock and what's left of a mining operation," he muttered. "Wait. There they are, two o'clock, about fifty feet from your position. They just came into view. Two man patrol but they don't appear to know we're here yet."

Kasumi remained as still as a statue. "Think you can get both? Not much I can do without breaking cover. Last thing we want is a firefight," she whispered.

Up on a hill, Victor adjusted the magnification of his scope, waiting patiently to line up the shot. "Just a second, darlin' and you'll have your answer." The rifle was a modified version of the M-29 Incisor, a weapon that could put three rounds into a target before the barrel had a chance to deviate. It was designed to overwhelm an enemy's defenses and this modified version took that even further. The first round carried a special charge that attempts to overload the target's kinetic barrier, the second carried some of the same charge as before but was design mostly toward penetration. Finally the third round focuses on causing as much damage as possible.

The M-29 already had an added benefit of noise reduction by making the burst sound no different than a single shot fired, but this particular rifle also had an addition to this by reducing the sound signature itself. So when Victor fired, the shot sounded further away in most cases. Here on the asteroid of X57, it's doubtful anyone would notice.

Kasumi could see the patrol coming around a corner when both went down in the time of a breath. She was relieved, and while optic camouflage was reliable, it certainly was not perfect. A well trained eye could spot you given the chance.

"Two less bad guys," Victor commented over the com in a his usual calm voice.

"Well that's not all of them. Surely there are more inside," a yellow visor appeared before her eyes allowing Kasumi to see through a wall of the modular building. "No one immediately inside, or at least as far as I can see." The X-Ray visor was experimental technology even back when she swiped the original prototype before her adventure with Shepard against the Collectors. It was designed to visually penetrate short distances, allowing security to observe hidden weapons and other deceptions. The problem was the idea of a device that could see through clothing, armor, and walls even short distances was controversial. The company working on the project was going to file it away, but Kasumi stole both the prototype and the research as well before scrubbing their system of its existence. The scope on Victor's M-29 had also been fitted with this technology.

Victor asked, "You ever use that thing on me?"

"Would you have cared if I had?" She was grinning but it wasn't like anyone could see it.

"It being you...probably not," he replied with a smile. Victor was still up on a hill, fully camouflaged and keeping a low profile. The former Alliance Marine was putting his training to good use. "Romere and Hannibal, you're clear to move up."

Two more figures entered the area with optic camouflage engaged. Victor could barely see two blurry images as they tactfully moved cover to cover till reaching their Japanese squad member. Once there, each covered a different angle toward the door and patiently waited for it to open.

"Okay fellas, I've bypassed the door. We can enter anytime. Their com chatter doesn't amount to much more than casual conversation, so I don't think they've noticed their missing friends. Area still clear, Vic?"

"Crystal. I got your six, darlin'. Don't worry," he replied while keeping an eye on the area. "Condor, keep us informed of any traffic that might be trouble."

A turian voice replied over the com link, "Understood, Captain."

"You guys don't have to call me that anymore. Just call me Victor," he was trying for a friendlier tone but no one responded.

Kasumi backed away from the door and out of its field of view just in case further in someone became aware of their presence. Drawing the M-12 Locust she picked up from what now seemed a long time ago, the thief readied herself for the breach. When she gave the go order it was Hannibal who went in first, followed by Romere, and then herself. Hannibal broke right, Romere left, while Kasumi focused on the center.

"First room clear," Romere said quietly. His eyes scanned the room while he drew from years of experience in the turian military. The entrance hall was pretty much just that, with three doors to choose from, one for each wall. He didn't have to say a word before Kasumi had her visor scanning the walls for the nearest threat. Their camo could fool most sensors so long as no one got close enough to detect the visual distortion.

Kasumi whispered, "Left side first. Three targets gambling at a table, neither has their back to the door, nor do they seem to be paying attention to the monitors. Be ready for attention from the right if things get messy, and our red sand shipment is behind the last door."

"How many on the right?" asked the turian.

"Just one," she answered. "Looks like he's asleep."

Romere's experience dictated his next words, "The sleeper is your's. Take him first and do it quietly. We'll proceed based on the results."

Kasumi crept over to the right door. Her visor was turned off again but she knew the would be victim was still there. This unit had been her idea. Victor chose it's members but it was her idea to put it together. The thief moved into the room, it was a human she saw sleeping on a makeshift bunk. All the life that had been lost during the Reaper War made her hesitant, but then Kasumi remembered why she put this outfit together. It wasn't long before evil had set back in the hearts of the sentient races. Slavers, drug runners, and other depraved individuals were back in business. The dust hadn't even settled before they began trying to profit from all the suffering throughout the galaxy.

Killing a man in his sleep felt a lot like murder, but she had a job to do. One hand on the man's mouth and before he could make a sound the omi-blade was in his chest. His brown eyes opened wide when he felt her hand, apparently a light sleeper, then soon the orbs became dim, and quickly vacant. Killing itself wasn't an issue, but this seemed different. Kasumi remembered what Donovan Hock had done to Keji, and just like that she no longer cared. People like him and The Illusive Man were the real problem as far as she was concerned. Moved by the events after the Reaper War and inspired by the stories Garrus told about his time with Shepard and his own little group on Omega, Kasumi had set out to make a difference.

"It's done," she whispered stoically.

"Roger that," replied Romere moving into position to breach the left door. He knew this would be loud and hoped these were the last of the drug runners. Hannibal was on the opposite side of the doorway crouched while his turian companion stood ready. They would clear the small room simultaneously, one firing high while the other hit low. Kasumi then came up behind her two squad members and aimed for the center of the door. This was the moment the mission could change for the worse if they were wrong.

When the door slid open, two salarians and a batarian looked up. They saw nothing at first until a blast from Hannibal's M-27 Scimitar plowed through the doorway, followed by a spray from Romere's M-76 Revenant. Kasumi then opened up with her Locust at the salarian seated in direct view. The drug runners didn't die right away thanks to the automatic defenses in their hard suits, but the continuous fire from the three weapons into the room made their resistance short lived. Although one salarian managed to get a pistol out and fire a few rounds toward Romere, in the end all he did was miss the doorway in his frantic attempt.

Each stopped firing after any visible target from their angle was down, and their camouflage had dropped as soon as weapons were unleashed upon the unsuspecting drug runners. "All targets down," Romere reported over the com. The turian wore dusky gray armor that covered head to foot and his helmet provided no view of the face beneath it.

Casually walking in to observe the scene, Romere moved over to the monitors. There was nothing out of the ordinary, the equipment pretty basic, and they stood little chance of detecting their infiltration. He noted that they were only armed with M-3 Predators, a heavy pistol but not enough firepower to put up a capable resistance against them.

Hannibal was the next one to walk in. A human in dark blue heavy armor, his face shield was clear showing brown skin and eyes. He carried himself well as he inspected the bodies and collected their weapons. Terra Nova was his home, or at least it was before the Reaper War, and X57 was in his backyard. That made this mission a little personal for him.

Last one in, Kasumi was wearing a hard suit for a change, dull black in color, and complete with helmet. The suit appeared to be lightweight and was designed to give her as much mobility as possible. If it wasn't for a lack of breathable atmosphere she wouldn't be wearing it at all. The helmet wasn't as bulky as most made for humans, closer to that of a turian design but for a human head and allowed full view of her face.

"Anything out of the ordinary?" she asked.

Romere answered, "This must have been a startup operation or a poorly funded one. Lightly armored and only carrying M-3s."

Kasumi agreed, "Resistance does seem a little light. The guards outside had M-8s, not hard to find on the post battlefields of the war. They're still finding bodies and equipment five years later."

On the floor she noticed a tablet by the dead batarian. While not out of the ordinary itself, kneeling down to inspect what was on it revealed that it was a manifest of orders to other planets, including Omega. "Well here's something."

Over the com Victor asked, "What do you got?"

Kasumi replied, "It's a shipping manifest of red sand deliveries to be made throughout the galaxy. Including Omega."

Hannibal injected himself into the conversation, "You trying to say these jokers have a large enough operation to compete with Aria?"

"That's doubtful," answered Kasumi. "But until we know more we can follow the trail to see where it leads. Someone is funding them and a small startup usually doesn't have this many ties. They're shipping all over the galaxy and if I had to guess I'd say they've been doing it for awhile."

"Good enough for me," said their turian companion. "Let's get the cargo and get off this rock." He walked out of the room and toward the remaining door. Kasumi and Hannibal followed shortly behind and when they opened the last door they were all a little shocked at what they saw.

"That's a lot of sand," Hannibal said in awe as he took in rows of the stuff packed up and neatly stacked.

A turian voice came over the com, "You might want to hurry. We have a Kowloon class transport on a direct path to your location."

"Roger that, Condor. Kasumi, I don't suppose you hid the bodies of the patrol?" asked Victor.

"Oops..." she said feeling a little embarrassed and disappointed at the same time. "I'm still getting used to this."

Romere shook his head but didn't say a word. He walked out of the room and toward the entrance as if nothing needed to be said. Checking his M-76 he waited by the entrance for the others. Hannibal and Kasumi looked to each other then followed suit, but the ugly look she was given made her feel like she had stepped on a puppy. It's not like she meant to do it.

Victor reassured her, "We'll have to work on that, but for now everyone get ready for an ambush. You three hold inside until I give the word. When they find the bodies, we'll hit them as hard as we can."

Romere answered, "Understood. We're awaiting and ready."

"Condor, I need the Raven ready ASAP in case we need a quick exit or to join the party. Also, have William ready to drop in if necessary." Victor could see the transport coming into view. There was nothing special about the incoming ship, in fact all the Kowloon class transports looked alike. They were a workhorse for many companies throughout the galaxy.

"Solid copy. We'll be ready," the turian pilot replied over the com.

Victor watched the transport land just outside the mining area, then scoped in to get intel on their new arrivals. When the passengers exited the craft, he noted aloud, "Looks like we got three more batarians, an asari, two more salarians, and a krogan. They don't look too heavily armed. I'm guessing they're here for their shipment."

"We just need to find out whose pulling the strings," commented Kasumi. She knew much about the criminal element in the universe and how they operated. The woman was a thief after all, and a good one. However, drugs and the people it brought were not her usual run ins. She primarily dealt with those more sophisticated.

"True enough," said the accompanying turian. "But we'll need to shut their whole operation down eventually."

Victor agreed, "Cutting the head off a snake doesn't always work when that snake turns out to be more like a hydra."

They didn't have long to wait before seven new targets were nearly to the building. It was the asari who noticed something was off when they hadn't seen any guards. Victor was too far away to hear what they were saying, but the asari had started using the same com channel as the slain drug runners.

"You have got to be the laziest bunch of morons I've ever had the displeasure of working with. Why aren't there guards posted?" asked the asari in an angry voice.

Kasumi explained she could hear the asari using the com link she had patched into earlier. "They want to know where the guards are."

"There aren't any salarians or batarians among us, so I doubt she'd believe a fake over the com," commented Hannibal.

"Agreed," said Romere. "But they'll know something is wrong if they don't get an answer. Even still..."

"I get it," Kasumi interrupted. "The bodies. The ones I forgot to hide are going to cause trouble for us." She was truly sorry for the slip up and it was noticeable in her voice.

"Can it for now," ordered Victor. "We're gonna turn that mistake into an opportunity."

"Are you idiots asleep in there? I swear if you are I will tear you all apart with my biotics, record it, and then send it to your families!" The asari wasn't going wait much longer before storming in to investigate. "Everyone spread out."

It was one of the salarians who discovered the dead patrol. He motioned the others over to his position where they apparently started discussing what to do. Victor could see them waving hands and pointing to each other but he only had an idea of what they might be saying to one another. This was the best time to spring their ambush and the captain couldn't wait a moment more or they might lose any surprise they have left.

"Bring 'em down," Victor said coolly. There wasn't a sign of uneasiness in his voice. Chances are there were clues on that ship, or at the very least one of the newcomers might provide some information. When they came here their mission was to wipe out a small red sand operation. Turns out the operation's a lot bigger than they were initially led to believe.

Romere knew they'd probably either hear the door open or see it happen so he didn't bother to cloak before exiting the building. Immediately he threw an arc grenade which exploded at the feet of both salarians and the krogan, overloading their shields and promptly softening them up for his M-76 to do its damage. One of the salarians didn't live long enough to react before he died. Hannibal was right behind his turian friend in exiting the building, plowing a lethal spray of continuous fire from his M-27. The other salarian caught most of it, but was still alive. This left a very angry krogan.

The krogan roared then charged Romere head first, knocking the turian to the ground. Hannibal didn't stop, his focus on the salarian now trying to hid behind a rather large rock, he continued to lay down fire as he moved forward. Kasumi then uncloaked long enough to put a small device on the krogan's back and disappeared again. Within moments the device exploded, disorienting and drawing his attention away from her turian companion. This gave Romere time to get to his feet again.

Up on the hill, Victor sighted in on one of the batarians and fired. The rifle released a three round burst that smashed through the batarian's kinetic barrier, punctured his helmet, and left a rather large hole in what lie beneath. If the last round hadn't killed the sniper's target, exposure did the rest. This, however, gave away his position and as a result the asari ordered the other two batarians toward Victor's position.

Hannibal was almost to his salarian target when suddenly he was lifted off his feet by the asari. "Well this ain't good," he muttered along with other choice words. He tried to get his shotgun level but all he could do was float there until he went crashing toward the ground with enough force the man nearly went unconscious. She was moving in to finish him when the asari felt, then saw an omi-blade piercing through her right thigh. Kasumi withdrew it then aimed down the sight of her M-12. The thief was about to order them to surrender when her hard suit was slammed by a jolt of electricity, then immediately caught in a plasma explosion than sent the woman to her knees.

Romere unloaded on the krogan, and yet in its blind rage was attempting to charge again. The turian was quick to get out of its way this time, then tried finishing the krogan off from behind. It fell face first to the ground and if the krogan wasn't dead, Romere would have to come back for it later. Now he had another target in view.

Victor managed to get around the hill and down toward the action below. While he didn't enjoy giving up his position above, he had a surprise for the batarians. "Condor. Give our guests a warm welcome, would you?"

"Understood," said the turian pilot as the Raven lifted off the rocky surface it had rested on since their arrival. It had been cloaked this whole time and was invisible on both sensors and to the naked eye. It's design was based on the Normandy SR-1 but was a bit smaller. Built primarily for stealth, it had few armaments and little armor. Once it's shields were taken out, there wasn't much to stop it from being destroyed.

The Raven became visible to the two now startled batarians and opened up on them with its two forward weapons. Condor made short work of them then disappeared from sight.

Drawing a M-6 Carnifex, the asari aimed it at Kasumi's head to finish her off. Before she could squeeze the trigger, however, a burst ripped into her from behind. Mostly absorbed by her suit, Victor's rifle had landed one round square in the shoulder of the asari, forcing her to drop the pistol. The blue woman tried to hopple off to a safer position but Romere understood why they hadn't killed her yet, and so when he fired his light machine gun it was to suppress only. This forced her off balance and to the ground below.

Victor moved as quickly as he could to Kasumi, "Are you alright?" He knew she had fought through worse but concern was apparent in his voice.

"I'll be fine, Vic. Just a little dazed, that's all."

He looked her over and given the condition of the hard suit, it wouldn't take another hit before becoming compromised. "Those are plasma burns. Good thing you've got a backup on the Raven."

"Vic, if it's all the same with you, I hope I don't have to use it."

"Yeah, well. Depends on mission, darlin'." He turned his focus toward the asari laying on the ground beside them. Purple blood covered part of her white armor, but the bleeding had stopped obviously due to medigel depensed within. The blue woman's expression was that of disgust and then occasionally something softener as she glanced over to the fallen krogan.

Getting to his feet, Hannibal's eyes darted around taking in the scene. He could account for everyone he'd seen except for the salarian that went into hiding. "Where's the other salarian?"

Romere shrugged then stated, "I haven't seen him since he attacked Kasumi."

"Condor, this is Victor. We have a salarian unaccounted for, do mind scanning the area?"

Condor replied, "I'm on it. What are your orders once I find him?"

Victor thought about it for a second then answered, "Waste him then pick him up. I got a feeling we won't need the salarian once we're done here."

Condor acknowledged his captain, "Roger that." And then was off to the search without another word.

"Okay, sweetheart," Victor said to the asari. "You got a name?" All she had were a few unpleasant words, none of which resembled a name. He collapsed the M-29, returning it to the carrying slot on the backside of his black and gray camouflaged armor. The captain gently lifted the asari's chin with the index finger of his right hand and said, "I think it's time we go inside for a little chat." Afterwards he motioned Hannibal to take her inside, then instructed Romere to bring the krogan inside as well.

Once inside Victor ordered the asari's armor removed, stripped to her undergarments, and placed in a chair. The now helmet-less krogan was in plain view on the floor with Hannibal standing over him, shotgun aimed at its face. Romere was to the opposite of her krogan friend and Kasumi was watching from a corner behind the asari.

Victor removed his helmet revealing a man in his early thirties with short blonde hair and brown eyes. There was a thin scar that ran down the left cheek of a clean shaven face, and another above his right eye. He started to go for his M-11, which was standard issue for this team, but the captain shook his head with a smile and reached for another weapon that hadn't seen use in a very long time. A M1911 pistol from Earth's twentieth century.

"So first you humiliate me, and not you want to show me a toy? What kind of sick freak are you?" asked the asari. There was fear underneath her resistant exterior that bled through in her eyes and voice.

The captain pointed to his pistol asking, "Oh you mean this? This is not a toy, but a thing of beauty. You see, this is a relic from twentieth century Earth. A Colt M1911 to be precise."

"What does that have to do with me?" the asari asked angrily but with a smile forming. She seemed somewhat amused by it, though there were still traces of fear underneath her facade.

"Well if you let me finish, beautiful, I'll tell you." The asari winced when Victor called her "beautiful" as though it was to mock her graceful appearance. This is actually what he wanted, to keep her off balance and though she was beautiful, she was no prettier than any other asari as far as he was concerned.

Victor sat in a chair directly in front the captured asari then said, "This piece has been in my family for generations, passed down from my Daddy, and his before him." He cocked back the hammer then pressed it solidly against the knee of her uninjured leg. "Now tell me everything you know about this little operation, including the name of your boss."

"You won't have a family to pass anything down to once..." The asari was interrupted by the pistol firing, an old fashioned bullet exploding through her knee and splattering purple blood all around it. A scream ripped from her lips followed by hate filled eyes and gritted teeth.

"Wrong answer, princess," said the captain. He then pressed the barrel against her uninjured shoulder. "You can save yourself and your boyfriend here a lot of pain by just telling me what I want to know."

She didn't even try to deny it. The asari's face had turned to bitter acknowledgement of her situation, and at first it looked as though she wasn't going to say anything until Victor was about to squeeze the trigger. "Part of this shipment was scheduled to be delivered tomorrow at a warehouse on Terra Nova. My Volus contact there was suppose to exchange drugs for weapons and then we were to wait for further instructions. That's all I know."

Victor squeezed the trigger, destroying the asari's other shoulder. Her cry was a mix of anger and fear, but it was also gut wrenching enough Kasumi wasn't sure she could handle any more of it. Tears ran down the blue woman's face and the fight was leaving her. Anger or not she wasn't going to take much more.

"I think that's a little vague. What's the name of the Volus you're meeting and what's the warehouse's location?"

"Why should I tell you?" She spit the question at him.

"Well I start working on lover boy next..."

"Wait," she pleaded as tears ran down her face. "He's old. Just let him be. It's bad enough any chance for a cure for his people has been taken away, just let him go." She paused for a moment to steady her voice against the pain then continued, "I'll tell you what you want to know. His name Don Karla, but it's not like there will be many Volus on Terra Nova. He shouldn't be...hard to spot. Coordinates for the meet are on...my ship."

"And who are you working for?"

"Vic..." Kasumi started to say something but let it trail off. He looked over to her and nodded. It was enough and their prisoner wasn't going to provide any further information of value.

The captain stood up then leveled his firearm toward the forehead of his captive. Her tears streaming from closed eyes, she never opened them again. Hannibal followed Victor's lead by executing the krogan. All was silent until Condor came over the com link, "Package secured."

"Roger that, Condor. Good work, now head back. We'll meet up once we're done here." His voice was its normal calm tone, but later when it had time to settle in his mind, the torture would come back to haunt him. Victor wasn't a monster, but he would do whatever necessary to get the job done.

Kasumi laid a hand on Victor's left arm then asked, "Did we need to torture her?"

His eyes meet her own with a sincere reply, "We wouldn't have gotten more intel without it."

"Maybe..." She knew he was trying to reassure her that this was necessary but she wasn't sure the outcome was worth it.

"Darlin' we all agreed we'd do whatever it took to accomplish our goals. Don't go soft on me now."

"I never said I was hard to begin with, but I did agree," Kasumi's next words were heavy with concern. "I just feel like maybe the cost will be too high in the end." She dropped her hand away from Victor, looking down at the dead asari at her feet.

Romere interrupted the couple's conversation trying to clarify her stand, "You're afraid we'll eventually be as bad as them?"

Kasumi shot back rather bluntly, turning to face her inquisitor, "I'm afraid we'll lose that which separate us."

Victor smiled in a way that often made her give up too easily, putting his arms around her waist saying, "I guess you'll just have to be our conscience."

"An odd role for a thief," she said trying to ignore the smile. There were times she hated that smile and this was one of them.

"If we're being technical," Romere injected himself again, "then you're not just a thief anymore."

"Yeah, well... I suppose that started before we met," she explained.

Victor asked, "Shepard?"

Kasumi looked mournful for a minute answering, "He certainly had a way of changing people."

"Did the two of you..." Victor was wondering if the two of them had a relationship.

"No," she replied. "Shep was a friend. Five years later there's a quarian admiral out there who still refuses to believe he's dead though."

"What's next on the agenda?" asked Hannibal trying to break up what he felt was awkward to witness.

After securing his helmet in place and returning the Colt to its belted holster, Victor responded with, "Next we need to search their ship. Find out whatever we can from its systems and dump all the bodies aboard. We need to load all of that red sand as well."

Romere asked, "All the bodies?"

"Yeah. There needs to be little trace of our presence and after we get the sand and the bodies out of here, I want to set charges to level this building."

Kasumi thought that was a little odd, so she asked, "Why blow the building? Wouldn't that look suspicious?"

"The only thing that matters is that there's no evidence we were ever here. They're gonna know someone is disrupting their business sooner or later, but we don't want them finding out its us until we're ready. Also, we don't want the Council sending a Spectre after us for unsanctioned activity."

Romere nodded and he and Hannibal got to work removing the bodies from the building. Kasumi decided to go back over the basic computer setup the drug runners had to see if she could learn any more, while Victor began carting red sand from the back room to the entry hall.

Meanwhile back on the Raven, Condor continued to monitor traffic around X57. All seemed to be quiet again except for the chatter between the away team. William was in the back of the ship working on some sort of project now that he wasn't needed in the field. An engineer by trade, he was always tinkering with something. This time he was working on the new engine he had been building using plans Kasumi had stolen.

The mass relay network had been destroyed the same day the Reapers were defeated. Some scientists and engineers were able to use parts salvaged by the fallen reaper vessels to put up a makeshift network until a better solution could be found. It wasn't perfect by any means and often had its problems, but it did function to get ships around the galaxy. Something that was desperately needed if supplies and resources were going to be replenished.

"You're not trying to build that thing inside my ship are you?" asked Condor over the Raven's internal communication system.

William had brown hair parted to the right, green eyes, and a short beard. "Yes!" he said. "I mean no, not completely."

Condor was relieved, "Well that's good. I was starting to wonder how you were going to fit everything in back there without it actually being installed."

The engineer expressed his irritation at the interruption, "I'm not a miracle worker, and there are parts I don't have yet. Plus I'd need to tear down part of our current engine too!"

"Ummm...hmmm. You might what to check with Victor before you go tearing out the engine," warned Condor. "Are you even sure it will work?"

William replied feeling even more annoyed, "Of course it will work once it's finished! It will allow us to engage the optic camo longer and should boost jump efficiency by three percent. It won't impact the IES system for better or worse though."

"Though what?" Condor asked.

"Huh?!" William seemed genuinely confused.

"Never mind. I'll leave you to your work."

Back at the enemy freighter, the MSV Majesty had been boarded and searched. Kasumi checked the ship's systems for additional data, including any record of where it had been. "That's strange. There's almost no information on here. Mostly junk data designed to disguise other embedded information but there's nothing embedded. The coordinates of the warehouse were on a tablet next to the pilot's controls. Nothing else useful on it either."

Victor asked, "Any clue as to where the ship originated?"

"A few stops here and there to refuel but nothing out of the ordinary. I'd say they've been covering their tracks whenever possible."

A look of deep contemplation came over Victor's face, like nothing else existed around him. Something was definitely up and the scope of it couldn't be measured with the information they had on hand. The ship was also an oddity, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. "Why does MSV Majesty sound familiar?" he asked.

Hannibal shrugged, "Maybe it used to belong to someone you know."

"No, that's not it. Can't say I've ever known anyone who owned their own freighter."

Feeling somewhat amused by the sudden mystery before them, Romere suggested, "You could have seen that name anywhere. At a space port, a mission report, a news headline...heh! It could have been part of an evacuation detail for all we know."

William's voice came over the com link, "Hey, can I add to this discussion?"

"Go ahead," Victor stated.

"Well, some years back when I was in C-Sec, I remember there was this guy trying to get help for his brother who I think was the captain, but I really don't remember any more than that."

"Helpful, but not," commented Romere being rather blunt.

"I've downloaded all we can get from this thing, so we might as well leave," said Kasumi.

Victor nodded. "Okay, let's get the rest of the red sand aboard this hunk o' junk and put it on a collision course for the sun. We need to make sure we have all the bodies accounted for as well."

Hannibal added, "Romere and I already took care of the bodies."

"Alright, then I guess we just need to blow the building before returning to the Raven."

Hannibal volunteered to set the charges then was on his way, while the rest of the team loaded the last of the red sand. Kasumi set the ship's navigational system to plot a course for the sun, making her the last one off. Once that was done everyone returned to the Raven to gear down and prepare for the next mission.

"If you don't mind me asking, Kasumi, where did you get the intel?" Romere was interested to know. This was their first operation together since the Reaper War, although a bit different than their previous encounters. They've fought reaper forces, Cerberus, and even geth as part of the N7 Special Operations that was formed during the war. Only Victor had any right to call himself N7, but the rest adopted the name as an allied special forces division helping to fight a war many thought we'd lose. It was disbanded once the war was over per the Alliance's orders.

Kasumi answered saying, "My source is an information broker whom I've worked with in the past. The intelligence has always been solid and I trust them."

Hannibal was unnerved by this and he didn't have issue making it known. "Never trust one of those brokers! In the end they're always looking out for number one and will go with whoever gets them the most."

"Oh I trust this one with my life, and they're the best in the business," proclaimed Kasumi.

Romere asked with eyes staring intently from his brown skin and white marked face, "The Shadow Broker?"

"That's one name they go by, yes."

Hannibal began raising his voice, "This chick's gonna get us killed, Victor!"

Victor, however, remained calm as he shot back, "If I didn't trust her judgment, I never would've asked you guys to come along."

Hannibal got closer to Victor, pointing his finger at him and accusing, "You don't see it because Miss Japanese here, has you so wound around her finger, you can't see past her six!"

Without as much as hint, Victor punched the other man hard enough it knocked him back a few steps. "That's no way to talk about a lady!"

The other man was holding the side of his face when he angrily stated, "Lady? She's a criminal and I should shoot her like the rest!"

Victor was level headed but angry. He didn't want this team to fall apart but he wasn't going to allow someone to disrespect Kasumi if he could help it. "You harm her in any way, and you'll be lucky if you retain the ability to feed yourself. Am I making myself clear?"

Hannibal wasn't about to get in a fight with Victor if he could help it. He knew the chances of winning that bout were slim at best given the difference in their training and experience. All he could muster to say in response was, "Yeah... Guess I can't trust you either." Then he left what amounts to the CIC for his quarters.

Romere started after the man who had just left and on the way looked to Victor saying, "I'll go talk to him. Maybe I can get him to listen to reason."

Victor nodded to his turian friend.

After the other two had left, Kasumi asked, "I'm causing too much trouble, aren't I?"

He looked on her with kinder eyes than with his previous conversation, "Its not your fault. Hannibal is forgetting what it's like in the beginning."

"And you haven't? You looked like you were enjoying yourself with the asari."

"No... I haven't," he replied. "If that's how it appeared, that's because it's an act. Sometimes you don't have to torture someone if they are afraid you'll actually go through with it. Others it's what they understand, so you have to proceed otherwise you lose any advantage you may have had."

"Aren't you worried about me being a thief too?"

Victor smiled and said, "You already stole my heart, what more of value could you take?"

"Victor..." The woman was suddenly feeling uncomfortable. There were feelings between them but Kasumi wasn't sure she was ready to go all in.

He took her hand in his but lowered his eyes to the floor, "I know. The last two guys didn't work out for you."

Kasumi stepped back from Victor slowly then faced away from him saying, "No. Yes. I don't know. Keji was the love of my life and Jacob was the first I'd considered after getting over his death. Then Jacob died fighting the Collectors before I could even find out if he was interested."

Victor raised his gaze to look up at Kasumi, but she was still with her back to him. "And now you're afraid I'll die on one of these missions," he said drawing a conclusion.

"Well it is a possibility," she said flatly.

"Kasumi, there's always a chance one of us could die. That's just the way it is."

She turned back to face him, her eyes staring back at him from under the hood she often wore. Silence filled what to them could have been an eternity. Thoughts filled both their minds weighing what was said versus the what might be, but it was Kasumi who said, "Doesn't make it any easier. The knowledge that is..."

Victor's mind was made and he had seen enough in one life time to know life is a very short thing. "Darlin'...we need to live in the now. You'll never be happy if you push people away for fear of losing them."

"Vic, I... I don't... I need time to think."

"Take all the time you need. I'm not going anywhere."

Back in Hannibal's quarters, two war buddies were discussing old times. Laughter could even be heard from outside the room as they reminisced about the time they were pinned down by Cerberus forces on two sides. William had stolen one of their Atlas mechs then did a dumbo drop right the middle of one side. The chaos he caused allowed them to focus on the other side.

"Man, I still remember the sound it made when William landed on one of their troopers! That guy is always up to something crazy," said Hannibal.

Romere was laughing when he said, "Inventive is more like it." He saw an opportunity to way in on what happened in the CIC and he took it. "Remember how many times Victor pulled our aft sections out of the fire?"

Hannibal's mood immediately changed as he proclaimed, "The Captain's lost it."

"Why do you say that?"

Hannibal immediately replied, "Think about it. This woman shows up out of nowhere and he just trusts her? Puts a team together on her recommendation. Let's her even engage on the first mission without so as a test run."

Romere was silent as he let his friend say a few other things he immediately put out of his mind. The turian knew his friend needed to vent sometimes but also knew that Hannibal sometimes acted without all the facts. "I don't think you know the whole story," he said. "You see, they met during one of our N7 Ops on Earth."

"I don't remember seeing her or even mention of her on any Op we did."

Romere decided to inform his friend, "Because you weren't suppose to know she was there. It was a joint operation and we were to hold the enemy at bay long enough for her to grab something that was needed for the Crucible. Only Victor knew at the time. I found out later when I accidentally walked in on them discussing...other things."

Hannibal wasn't quite sure how to take this new information. Victor had always been upfront about most everything when it came to the team, but now he occasionally would leave something out. He figured the girl was to blame for that. "So you didn't know either," he said. "And that doesn't bother you? Them being so secret? Why did they keep it that way, especially since the war's over."

Romere answered, "No, it didn't bother me. Back when I was in the turian military, the CO often kept information from his crew or squad, whatever the case might have been. I remember there was much I had to keep from my crew when I was the CO of a turian frigate. Keep in mind this was when Saren was out there putting the fear of spectres in everyone. I'm sure it's the..."

Hannibal cut him off, "Yeah it was stuff like that, that made me reconsider the Alliance!"

"As I was saying," Romere continued. "I'm sure it's the same for any military. We don't have to like it but there is a reason for it. And as for the joint-op, water under the bridge now. At the time, Command wanted to be sure communications weren't intercepted by Reaper forces or Cerberus. They also didn't want to disrupt squad cohesion."

"Yeah, okay. I get the last part. But she ain't a soldier and she's out here trying to hang with us. Maybe she should just stay on the ship."

Romere pointed out, "Maybe that's something you should be talking to Victor about. Not me."

"Aren't you the XO on this ship, Romere?"

"Yeah well, this isn't the military. I've done my part."

Hannibal asked, "What makes you think he'll listen?"

Romere stood and was on his way out the when he said, "This is where our conversation ends."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Hannibal asked being slightly frustrated.

"I've said all I came to say," he said and with that Romere was gone to look over the armory.

Condor's voice came over the ship's communication system, "Next stop Terra Nova."


End file.
